Chen Fan and Luo Sheng exchanged glances, bewildered.
After an unknown amount of time, Chris finally spoke, "This belonged to my grandmother. She wore this hairpin constantly, and it was gifted to her by the Divine Hall, just like this protective charm."
"My grandmother was a rare genius of the Maas family. By fifty-eight, she had already reached the ranks of a Divine level expert. At her celebratory ceremony, the Divine Hall sent this hairpin to her."
"However, after that day, my grandmother's health began to deteriorate. The outside world attributed it to cultivation deviation, and some feng shui masters claimed it was a curse from our Maas family's grave robbing, stating that no direct descendant would live past sixty!"
Chris cupped his face, "It's no coincidence, my grandfather also died mysteriously at the age of sixty."
"For years, I treated this as a curse. I even had a Ferryman's Stairway built in Maas Public Relations, all for the sake of..."
He shook his head, unable to continue.
Chen Fan looked at Chris, who seemed to be in pain, and asked slowly, "And now, do you believe this was not fate, but man-made?"
Chris took a deep breath. "After my grandmother died, the Divine Hall visited Maas Public Relations frequently. They spoke of their sorrow for the fall of a Divine level expert, but thinking back, they must have been here to retrieve this jade hairpin."
Chris looked at the two objects placed before him, suddenly unsure how to face his years of loyalty to the Divine Hall.
He shook his head, "No, perhaps it's just a coincidence. The Divine Hall has always acted with integrity and honor. They wouldn't do something like this!"
"There must be some misunderstanding."
He was entirely consoling himself.
Chen Fan chuckled, "Integrity and honor? Does the Divine Hall deserve those four words?"
"Dark Fox grew from a small organization of thirty people to a force capable of rivaling the Divine Hall. Do you not understand the reason behind this?"
"He who gains the Way has much help; he who loses it has little."
"The decadence of the Divine Hall is almost impossible to hide."
As Chen Fan finished speaking, Chris's face turned ashen.
Chen Fan slowly stood up from his seat. "I can provide a reasonable explanation for your recent speculation."
"Your Maas family, as the head of the five great families, holds a position in Europa second only to their Divine Hall. If you were to allow your family members to continue cultivating, sooner or later, your prominence would surpass the Divine Hall. This is an outcome the Divine Hall absolutely cannot tolerate."
"Therefore, they need to constantly engineer accidents, causing the powerful figures in your family to fall one by one. In essence, it's to restrain the development of your Maas family."
"It wasn't a curse from ancestral grave robbing, but a curse born from the Divine Hall's jealousy and greed!"
Chen Fan's forceful words made Chris's expression turn completely cold.
The light in his eyes dimmed along with it.
He had mercilessly torn down that thin veil, shattering his last shred of illusion regarding the Divine Hall!
Chris suddenly felt as if all his strength had been drained. "I... I can't believe that after so many years of faith, the reality behind the scenes is so hideous."
"Some things are hard to discern when you are within the game. Once you step out of the chessboard, you will realize that the so-called Divine Hall, the so-called believers, are nothing but a complete joke."
Chris's fist, which had been resting on the table, slowly tightened. He took a deep breath and took out the map he had been carrying, placing it between the two of them. "This is something my grandfather left me before he died."
"He told me there was a way to break the curse here."
Chris chuckled bitterly and shook his head. "I don't know what I'll find, but this has always been a knot in my heart. I must find it no matter what."
"Mr. Chen, my initial invitation still stands. I hope you can accompany me tomorrow."
Chen Fan raised an eyebrow. "You know that I have fallen out with the Divine Hall and am on their kill list. If you take me with you, you will already be challenging the Divine Hall."
"Right or wrong, we will know once I find what my grandfather left behind tomorrow. Then, it will be settled."
Although he said this, Chen Fan could already see from his expression that he harbored rebellious thoughts towards the Divine Hall.
Chen Fan chuckled and nodded in agreement, "I will definitely be there on time tomorrow."
Chris let out a long sigh. He rang the bell on the table, and shortly after, the Maas butler pushed the door open.
"Mr. Chris."
Chris nodded. "Escort them out for me."
Chen Fan refused. "No need for formalities. We can go back ourselves."
Having said that, he immediately stood up with Luo Sheng and left.
Perhaps it was due to the overwhelming amount of information, but Luo Sheng remained silent for a long time until they were both seated in his car—
"Good heavens! Is this the true face of the Divine Hall?"
"Their methods are so ruthless, completely unlike the outside rumors!"
Luo Sheng, who already disliked the hypocritical members of the Divine Hall, thinking they were all pretense, now had his impression of them plummet to an all-time low after hearing their conversation!
"It's because of scumbags like them that Europe is seeing fewer and fewer talents!"
Luo Sheng said, then quickly looked at Chen Fan beside him, patting his chest and guaranteeing, "Brother Fan, rest assured, I will stand firmly behind you!"
"If I can be of use then, I promise to do exactly as you say, I will definitely—"